Birds: Herb of the Field Given As Food To
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In the biblical narrative, birds are often depicted as part of God's creation, intricately woven into the fabric of the natural world. The provision of food for birds is a testament to God's care and sovereignty over all living creatures. The Bible makes several references to the sustenance provided to birds, emphasizing God's providence and the natural order He established.

Creation and Provision

In the Genesis account, God creates the heavens and the earth, filling them with a variety of living creatures, including birds. Genesis 1:29-30 states, "Then God said, 'Behold, I have given you every seed-bearing plant on the face of all the earth and every tree whose fruit contains seed. They will be yours for food. And to every beast of the earth and every bird of the air and every creature that crawls upon the earth—everything that has the breath of life in it—I have given every green plant for food.' And it was so." This passage highlights that God provided the herb of the field as sustenance not only for humans but also for birds and other creatures.

Divine Care and Sustenance

The Psalms frequently reflect on God's provision for all His creatures, including birds. Psalm 104:10-12 describes how God provides water and sustenance: "He sends forth springs in the valleys; they flow between the mountains. They give drink to every beast of the field; the wild donkeys quench their thirst. The birds of the air nest beside the springs; they sing among the branches." This imagery underscores the interconnectedness of creation and God's attentive care in providing for the needs of birds.

Teachings of Jesus

In the New Testament, Jesus uses birds as examples to teach about God's provision and the importance of trusting in His care. In Matthew 6:26 , Jesus says, "Look at the birds of the air: They do not sow or reap or gather into barns—and yet your Heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?" Here, Jesus emphasizes that if God provides for the birds, He will certainly provide for His people, encouraging believers to trust in God's provision.

Symbolism and Lessons

Birds are often used symbolically in Scripture to convey spiritual truths. Their reliance on God's provision serves as a reminder of the faith and trust that believers are called to exhibit. The consistent biblical theme of God providing herbs and plants as food for birds illustrates His meticulous care for creation and His desire for harmony within the natural world.

In summary, the Bible presents birds as recipients of God's provision through the herb of the field, reflecting His care and the order He established in creation. This provision serves as a powerful reminder of God's faithfulness and the trustworthiness of His promises.
Torrey's Topical Textbook
Genesis 1:30
And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creeps on the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

Whether There was any Reasonable Cause for the Ceremonial ...
... one another.] has this peculiarity apart from other birds, that it ... For the soil gives
birth to the herb of its ... Likewise "the field," ie the Church, must not be ...
/.../aquinas/summa theologica/whether there was any reasonable.htm

Chapter ii
... according to 3:18, does he eat of the herb of the ... gave names to all the domestic
animals and to the birds of the ... and to all the wild beasts of the field; but a ...
//christianbookshelf.org/leupold/exposition of genesis volume 1/chapter ii.htm

Book ii. Jerome Answers the Second, Third, and Fourth Propositions ...
... naturalists and physicians, who assign to every herb, every stone ... flesh, but every
one lived on field produce and ... need, he says, to speak of birds, when they ...
/.../jerome/the principal works of st jerome/book ii jerome answers the.htm

Mosaic Cosmogony.
... forth fishes and marine animals, as also the birds of the ... and reptiles, and also
the beast of the field,' that is ... for food in addition to the green herb, it is ...
/.../temple/essays and reviews the education of the world/mosaic cosmogony.htm

Religion not Godliness
... to grow for the cattle, and the green herb for the ... at all events, makes the garden
and the field grow, and ... my friends, He who feeds the young birds when they ...
/.../kingsley/twenty-five village sermons/sermon ii religion not godliness.htm

Concerning the Unity of God . On the Article, I Believe in one God ...
... then God so clothes the grass of the field which to ... the man who plucks up this or
that herb is changed ... Many men both net fishes and lime birds: into which then ...
/.../cyril/lectures of s cyril of jerusalem/lecture vi concerning the unity.htm

Matt. vi. 28, 29
... of the same example, that of the birds, neither mention ... of grass, such beauty of
the green herb: or rather ... had said, "Consider the lilies of the field," He added ...
/.../chrysostom/homilies on the gospel of saint matthew/homily xxii matt vi 28.htm

The Heinous Sin of Drunkenness
... the works of his hands; and every herb bearing seed ... Of every beast of the field,
every fish of the sea ... have made your hearts cages of unclean birds, with impure ...
/.../selected sermons of george whitefield/the heinous sin of drunkenness.htm

Book Twelve the Mode of Creation and the Truth of Scripture. ...
... I pay thee like the cultivation of a field, so that ... our hearts by the Holy Spirit,
who is given to us ... easy problems (as is signified by "the herb yielding its ...
/.../augustine/confessions and enchiridion/book twelve the mode of.htm

Chapter i
... to the level of the creation of the birds of the ... contradicts one school of thought
in the field of geology ... a result a pair of doubles "grass of herb" and "tree ...
//christianbookshelf.org/leupold/exposition of genesis volume 1/chapter i.htm

Resources
Were fish and sea creatures also destroyed during the Flood (Genesis 6-8)? | GotQuestions.org

How can Christian parents deal with empty-nest syndrome? | GotQuestions.org

What made some animals clean and others unclean (Genesis 7)? | GotQuestions.org

Birds: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.com

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Subtopics

Birds

Birds are Hostile to Strange Kinds

Birds of Abomination

Birds of Cruel and Rapacious Kings

Birds of Hostile Nations

Birds of People of Different Countries

Birds of Prey

Birds of the Devil and his Spirits

Birds of Unsettled Person

Birds: (Snaring) Death

Birds: (Snaring) Designs of the Wicked

Birds: Appointed for Food

Birds: Cages of

Birds: Called: Birds of the Air

Birds: Called: Feathered Fowl

Birds: Called: Fowls of Heaven

Birds: Called: Fowls of the Air

Birds: Called: Winged Fowl

Birds: Can all be Tamed

Birds: Clean: Cock and Hen

Birds: Clean: Crane

Birds: Clean: Dove

Birds: Clean: Offered in Sacrifice

Birds: Clean: Partridge

Birds: Clean: Pigeon

Birds: Clean: Quail

Birds: Clean: Sparrow

Birds: Clean: Swallow

Birds: Clean: To be Eaten

Birds: Clean: Turtle

Birds: Confinement of, in Cages Alluded To

Birds: Created by God

Birds: Created for the Glory of God

Birds: Creation of, on the Fifth Creative Day

Birds: Differ in Flesh from Beasts and Fishes

Birds: Divine Care of

Birds: Domesticated

Birds: Early Distinguished Into Clean and Clean

Birds: Figurative

Birds: Fly Above the Earth

Birds: Furnished With Claws

Birds: Given As Food to Man

Birds: God Provides For

Birds: Habits of

Birds: Have Each Their Peculiar Note or Song

Birds: Herb of the Field Given As Food To

Birds: Inhabit: Deserted Cities

Birds: Inhabit: Deserts

Birds: Inhabit: Marshes

Birds: Inhabit: Mountains

Birds: Instinct of, Inferior to Man's Reason

Birds: Instinctively Fear Man

Birds: Instincts of

Birds: Lessons of Wisdom to be Learned From

Birds: Make Their Nests in Clefts of Rocks

Birds: Make Their Nests in Deserted Cities

Birds: Make Their Nests in Trees

Birds: Make Their Nests: On the Ground

Birds: Make Their Nests: Under the Roofs of Houses

Birds: Make, and Dwell in Nests

Birds: Man's Dominion Over

Birds: Many Kinds of, Carnivorous

Birds: Many Kinds of, Graniverous

Birds: Many Kinds of, Migratory

Birds: Migrate

Birds: Moses' Law Protected the Mother from Being Taken With the Young

Birds: Names Given To, by Adam

Birds: Nests of

Birds: No Likeness of, to be Made for Worship

Birds: Not to be Eaten With Their Young

Birds: Often Remove from Places Suffering Calamities

Birds: Often Suffered for Man's Sin

Birds: Often Worshipped by Idolaters

Birds: Power Over Given to Man

Birds: Propagated by Eggs

Birds: Rapid Flight of, Alluded To

Birds: Rest on Trees

Birds: Solomon Wrote the History of

Birds: Solomon's Proverbs of

Birds: Songs of, at the Break of Day

Birds: Symbolical

Birds: Taken in Snares or Nets

Birds: The Blood of, not to be Eaten

Birds: The Property of God

Birds: Unclean: Bat

Birds: Unclean: Bittern

Birds: Unclean: Cormorant

Birds: Unclean: Cuckoo

Birds: Unclean: Eagle

Birds: Unclean: Gier Eagle

Birds: Unclean: Glede

Birds: Unclean: Great Owl

Birds: Unclean: Hawk

Birds: Unclean: Heron

Birds: Unclean: Kite

Birds: Unclean: Lapwing

Birds: Unclean: Little Owl

Birds: Unclean: Nighthawk

Birds: Unclean: Not to be Eaten

Birds: Unclean: Osprey

Birds: Unclean: Ossifrage

Birds: Unclean: Ostrich

Birds: Unclean: Owl

Birds: Unclean: Peacock

Birds: Unclean: Pelican

Birds: Unclean: Raven

Birds: Unclean: Stork

Birds: Unclean: Swan

Birds: Unclean: Vulture

Birds: What Species Were Unclean

Related Terms

Nest (22 Occurrences)

Chance (78 Occurrences)

Fowler (3 Occurrences)

Tread (60 Occurrences)

Eggs (7 Occurrences)

Dam (5 Occurrences)

Marking (11 Occurrences)

Pinion (4 Occurrences)

Brood (19 Occurrences)

Biri (1 Occurrence)

Stroke (26 Occurrences)

Sparrow (4 Occurrences)

Subapostolic

Sub-apostolic

Ostrich (9 Occurrences)

Exploration

Day (17670 Occurrences)

Road (155 Occurrences)

Across (172 Occurrences)

Hen (7 Occurrences)

Either (152 Occurrences)

Cyrus (20 Occurrences)

Birds (125 Occurrences)

Genealogy (29 Occurrences)

Literature (2 Occurrences)

Jesus (10891 Occurrences)

Atonement (112 Occurrences)

Christ (573 Occurrences)

Palestine (1 Occurrence)

Tree (245 Occurrences)

Birds: Have Each Their Peculiar Note or Song
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